Overcoming psychosocial barriers to chlamydia re-testing

Repeat chlamydia infections are common with complications increasing with the number of lifetime infections. Despite national guidelines, UK rates of re-testing remain low. Although social, motivational, psychological and environmental factors all act as barriers to re-testing, these have not been explored in-depth and methods to overcome these barriers are not well understood. We will explore the barriers and methods to overcome barriers to re-testing, and potential intervention and implementation strategies to increase re-testing among those previously diagnosed with chlamydia.

Our findings will inform interventions to increase chlamydia re-testing, contributing to ongoing priorities to halt the rise of STIs. Findings will inform National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP) recommendations and direct further research, aiding pathways towards a substantial impact on policy development and service delivery and reduction in undiagnosed repeat infections.